Therapeutic benefits can be realized by administering an active agent to a subject over an extended period of time. To this end, controlled-release drug delivery systems have been developed to control the rate of delivery of an active agent to a subject. Site-specific drug delivery can also offer therapeutic benefits. Site-specific drug delivery refers to the delivery of an active agent to a specific target tissue site, instead of systemically. Site-specific drug delivery offers advantages because the effect of the active agent on the target tissue can be enhanced while side effects of the active agent on other tissues can be reduced.
One technique for providing controlled-release site-specific drug delivery is to elute a desired active agent from a medical device. Devices used to provide controlled-release site-specific drug delivery can include medical devices wherein an active agent is eluted from a reservoir or lumen. Such medical devices are valuable tools in treating various disease states. However, they can be difficult to manufacture. In particular, the accurate and reproducible loading of a lumen with an active agent can be a difficult task.
As such there is a need for systems and methods for filling the lumen of a medical device in a manner that is accurate and reproducible.